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More than 50 million adults have an educational credential that isn't a college degree, according to new report: Higher Education Roundup

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Michelle McDevitt styles Anna Murad's hair at Cory's Day Spa and Hair Salon in Middleburg Heights. McDevitt has a cosmetology license, placing her among the millions of Americans who have a certificate or license, according to the U.S. Census.
(Chanda Neely, Cleveland.com)

CLEVELAND, Ohio - The federal government for the first time has data on the 50 million U.S. adults who hold some form of educational credential that isn't a college degree, Inside Higher Ed reported today.

The U.S. Census Bureau on Thursday released a report on the numbers and characteristics of people who hold certificates, professional certification and licenses in 2012. It also includes wage information.

The fields of certifications and licenses were wide-ranging and included business, nursing, education, cosmetology and culinary arts.

Experts said the new data could help shift policy makers’ view of postsecondary education as well as the debate over college completion.

For example, the report found that 11.2 million adults who hold a high school diploma or less have earned a professional certificate or license. That means five percent of Americans have not attended college but have some education beyond high school.

“If this alternative credential were incorporated into an expanded measure of education, these 11.2 million people might be recategorized into the ‘more than high school’ category,” the report said, “representing a shift of almost 5 percent of the adult population.”

The report also showed that non-degree credentials can lead to increased earnings. Over all, people working full time while holding some form of alternative credential earned more than those without one.

The Census Bureau cautions that the data are just the first step in what is intended to be a “continued examination” of educational attainment, enrollment and wage data on non-degree credential holders.

Anthony Carnevale, director of Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce, is an expert on the value of credentials and has recently written about the impressive wage returns of many forms of college-issued certificates.

Carnevale said the Census report is a welcome addition to efforts to understand the employment outcomes of various forms of credentials.

“This is an attempt to begin making those connections,” he said. “This will influence policy.”

Reconsidering MOOCs: After two years of hype about massive open online courses, academic leaders' expectations of all of online education have taken a small but remarkable step back, reports Inside Higher Ed.

That’s the main takeaway from "Grade Change: Tracking Online Education in the United States," an annual survey of more than 4,700 colleges and universities performed by the Babson Survey Research Group. The annual study was previously known as the Sloan Survey of Online Learning. The data, collected in partnership with the College Board, suggest online enrollment growth is slowing -- though not yet plateauing -- and that a divide is forming between institutions that offer online courses and degree programs and those that don’t.

Since the report debuted in 2003, the number of academic officers who have said online education is a critical component of their long-term strategy has grown steadily, peaking at 69.1 percent in 2012.

Last year, the number dropped to 65.9 percent, a decrease the report attributes entirely to officials at institutions without any online offerings. Among those institutions, the share of responses calling online education a critical component has plummeted from 32.9 percent in 2012 to 14.3 percent in 2013.

Mr. Myers is chief executive officer of PETCO Animal Supplies, Inc. The couple’s gift, named in honor of Mr. Myer’s parents, will establish The James W. and Lucille M. Myers Family Endowed Scholarship.

Providing scholarships and financial aid are key pillars of the Forever Carroll Campaign, which has now raised $72 million of the $100 million goal.

Jim Myers, who serves on the Board of Directors at John Carroll University, graduated from JCU in 1980 with a bachelor’s degree in accounting. In 1990, he joined PETCO, where he also serves on the board of directors.

From 1980 to 1990, he held various positions at the accounting firm of KPMG LLP, including senior audit manager. Mr. Myers is also a member of the boards of Jack in the Box, Inc., one of the nation’s largest hamburger chains, and the Retail Industry Leaders Association.

He and his wife live in the San Diego area.

“It was an easy decision for us to support John Carroll, based on our belief in the University’s strong foundation in Jesuit education.,” said Myers, a second-generation John Carroll alumnus in a news release. “Both my father, as well as my brother, Jeff, graduated from John Carroll, and our experiences at the school have had a significant impact on our lives and family."

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